Macquarie invests in tech-enabled property developer EDGE

Macquarie Asset Management is investing an undisclosed sum to buy a minority stake in sustainable real estate developer EDGE.

Macquarie said its funds have agreed to acquire the “significant minority stake” in EDGE alongside the property developer’s founder and CEO Coen van Oostrom.

Macquarie said the deal is part of its global opportunistic real estate strategy which is focused on ”investing in real estate designed for tomorrow’s world”.

Technology-enabled EDGE is a real estate developer focused on office spaces with operations in the Netherlands, Germany and the UK, as well as joint ventures in the US. The company is currently developing around €5bn of new office buildings including Berlin’s EDGE East Side, Amsterdam’s The Pulse, and EDGE London Bridge.

Dana Gibson, co-head of real estate in Europe at Macquarie Asset Management, said: “We are seeing rapidly growing demand for sustainable, wellbeing-focused office spaces from tenants, investors, governments and financiers.

“We are delighted to invest in EDGE, where we look forward to partnering with their specialist management team to expand the business in existing and new markets, as well as draw on our investment management experience to support the build-out of EDGE’s office developments.”

Jelte Bakker, the head of opportunistic real estate at Macquarie Asset Management, said: “Globally we have seen COVID-19 accelerate changing trends in the office sector, with growing demand for sustainable office spaces that are suitable for new economy tenants and their workforces.

“We have been actively pursuing investments in this sector and are delighted to gain exposure to EDGE’s market leading sustainable office developments.”

Van Oostrom said: “Leveraging Macquarie’s capabilities, we can build on our 25-year track record and further scale our efforts to help portfolio owners and real-estate managers upgrade their property assets, adopt smart building advancements, and improve their energy efficiency.”

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